Weekly Fun Plan: Apple of God’s Eye
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Welcome to this week’s Weekly Fun Plan: Apple of God’s Eye! If you haven’t already I highly recommend you read my introductory blog post “Faith-filled Fun: What Is It? And Why I Started It”. That post will give you some background into this blog and a little more in-depth explanation of my Weekly Fun Plans and how to use them.
This Week’s Theme: Apple of God’s Eye
Another one of my favorite Fall traditions is when my family, all my cousins, aunts, and uncles all take our annual hayride to a local apple orchard to get cider and donuts together. Apples and apple cider are definitely a staple on most people’s autumn bucket lists so this week we’re doing a fun apple theme on the blog. When I think of apples and the Bible one verse comes to mind Psalms 17:8. In this verse David is praying to God and says “Keep me as the apple of your eye”. This week our Bible lesson will dive into what it means to be the apple of God’s eye, and of course, all our craft, snack, and activity ideas are going to be “apple” themed. If you try anything in this week’s plan don’t forget to share your experiences on social media! Tag us @faithfilledfun on Instagram or use #faithfilledfun. New Weekly Fun Plans drop each Monday so stay up to date with the blog each week by subscribing to my email list!
Bible Lesson: What to Read or Watch this week
Since this week we are focusing on learning what it means to be the apple of God’s eye, here are some great resources to read/watch:
If you have young children (ages 0-8):
- Read/Do the following lesson together:
This week we’re going to talk about apples! Did you know the Bible talks about apples? Psalm 17:8 says “Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings” This psalm was a prayer written by David in the Bible. David had some big enemies that were trying to attack him and when he wrote this psalm he was scared, so he prayed to God that God would look after him.
But the phrase “apple of your eye” sounds pretty silly huh? Do you know what that means to be the apple of someone’s eye? Well, let’s see if we can figure it out together.
Look really close into my eyes (or your sibling’s eyes). What do you see?
What shape is the eye? Is it kind of round like an apple is round?
Do you see a little reflection of yourself in the eye? Yes!
When we say we are the “apple of someone’s eye” that means that they see us. Not only that but we put a lot of importance into what we can see so it also means that we are valued or important to that person because they are watching over us.
We also love to watch and look at things or people that we love, right? We watch the things our family members do because we love them, we look at our favorite books over and over, and we enjoy watching our favorite TV shows. So to be the apple of someone’s eye means that we are seen, valued, watched over, and loved by them.
We know that we are the apple of God’s eye! So you can be confident that you are always seen, valued, watched over, and loved by God! Isn’t that great? So if you ever get scared, anxious, or feel lonely, you can know that God sees you, He values you as precious and important, He’s watching over you, and He loves you no matter where you are or what’s going on.
- Watch “God Sees Me | Amazonia | Preschool Week 5” by Kidspring Children’s Ministry on YouTube. This is a cute and engaging 10-minute video that teaches your young children the truth that God sees us and cares for us through songs and a quick Bible story.
If you have older children/teens (ages 9-18):
- Read/Discuss the same lesson from above.
- Read or have them read the following verses in their own personal study time:
- Genesis 16:13
- Romans 8:38-39
- Psalm 23
- Psalms 121
Bible Lesson: Questions to Ask Your Kids/Discuss this week
If you read the recommended Bible verses or watched the YouTube video your kids should be able to answer this week’s question:
Who sees, values, and loves us all the time? Answer “God!”
If you have little ones (ages 0-8): I would focus on that one question this week, and work on having them memorize the answer. Ask them that same question every morning or evening and see if they can remember the answer.
If you have older children (ages 9-18): here are some additional questions you can discuss with them throughout the week:
- What does it mean to be the apple of God’s eye?
- How does it feel to know God always sees you and loves you?
- Knowing how much God values, loves, and watches out for us, how do you think we should respond?
Bible Lesson: Memory Verse
Memorizing scripture is such a vital skill to teach our children at a young age. Recalling and reciting scripture that they’ve memorized will help them as they grow and go through trials in life. It will also encourage them, equip them to go out and be little disciples of Jesus, and it will strengthen their own faith as they get older.
This week let’s have your kids work on memorizing Psalms 17:8. Memorizing scripture is so much easier for kids if you can find a way to make it fun. Here are some different ideas to try as a family to help memorize this week’s verse:
- Come up with some simple motions for each word of the verse and make a cheer or dance out of it.
- Come up with your own melody and create a song out of it.
- Make it a game. Start by saying one word or phrase of the verse at a time and have your kids repeat after you until you’ve gotten through the whole verse. Then repeat the process saying the words differently every time. Examples: slow, fast, in a silly voice, quiet, loud, etc.
Once your child/children have got it, I recommend practicing reciting the verse each morning over breakfast or before they leave for school and maybe even again before bed. Make it a part of your routine and you’ll be amazed at how fast they will begin to pick it up.
Supplies needed for this week’s activities
Here is a quick list of all the supplies that you will need in order to complete all the suggested crafts, activities, and snacks for this week’s plan. For a list of my most used craft supplies, and things I will be utilizing often in future Weekly Fun Plans be sure to check out my Links page.
- Glue
- Sharpie Marker
- Construction Paper
- Scissors
- Googly Eyes
- Glitter (optional)
- Popsicle Sticks
- Red Nontoxic Paint
- Paper Plates
- Printed photo of your child
- Apples
- Peanut Butter, Caramel, or Cream Cheese Fruit Dip
- Mini Marshmallows, M&Ms, Sprinkles, Granola, and/or Chocolate Chips
Snack: Apple Donuts
After practicing your memory verse or going over the discussion questions, have some fun as a family making these Apple Donuts. No frying involved, fun and delicious. Follow the link for step-by-step instructions.
Crafts:
For this week’s crafts, we are making Caramel Apple Characters and Apple of God’s Eye Picture Frames. Both crafts are easy and adorable.
Caramel Apple Characters:
There’s something about googly eyes that just takes the cuteness level of a craft and doubles it and this week I have an absolutely adorable craft for you. You’re going to love these easy Caramel Apple Characters. Follow the link for easy step-by-step instructions for this craft.
Apple of God’s Eye Picture Frames:
For our second craft this week, we have these super cute Apple of God’s Eye Picture Frames. This craft is a great way to have a further discussion with your kids about this week’s lesson and gives a visual reminder that they are the apple of God’s eye. Follow the link for an easy step-by-step guide.
Activities:
With our theme this week “Apple of God’s Eye” here are a few extra ideas for activities to do with your children. Feel free to come up with your own ideas too:
- Visit a local apple orchard as a family.
- Make some homemade crockpot applesauce. My family loves this recipe by aGOUDAlife.
- Bobbing for apples.
- Bake an apple pie or make an apple crumble together as a family.
Parenting Tip of the Week:
One easy way we can help our children build a strong foundation of faith is through the music we listen to in our homes and in the car. It can be such a passive activity having music on in the background while we cook dinner, while they play with their toys, or while we drive them to school or practice, but it can make such an impact. Fill your home with praise and worship music whenever possible. You’ll see the greatest effects of this when you suddenly hear your children singing along to the words of your favorite worship song. Check out my Spotify for playlists I’ve created specifically with Christian Songs for Kids and My Current Worship Favs to play in our home!
Prayers:
Lastly, I like to end each Weekly Fun Plan with some example prayers for your week. One is to pray with your kids, maybe before they get on the bus in the morning, before a meal, or before bed, and the other prayer is for you, the parent, to pray over your kids throughout the week.
Prayer to say with your kids this week:
Dear God, thank you for keeping me the apple of your eye. Help me to remember that I am always seen, valued, cared for, and loved by you. Amen
Prayer to pray over your kids this week:
Dear Heavenly Father, I am so thankful for your eternal love and compassion for not only me but for my child/children. Thank you for making me the apple of your eye and let this week be a reminder to me and my child, that nothing can ever separate us from you and your love. When life throws difficult situations at me or my family, remind us that you are always in control and your presence is all we need. In Jesus name, Amen.
Have an amazing week and don’t forget to subscribe to my email list and follow me on Instagram @faithfilledfun to stay up to date with the blog!
